What is the word on WoodWork Magazine? I have a running subscription but I haven’t recevied any new issues under it’s new ownership. Is it still published or is it gone for good?
http://furnituresociety.org/furn/docs/woodwork_close.pdf
Edited 1/1/2009 1:14 pm ET by mvflaim
Replies
I asked the same question a week ago. No answer. I have never subscribed but used to buy off the stand. Got too artsy fartsy but had some great stuff to; some of my favorite articles of any of the various magazines.
roc
Artsy fartsy is the word I thought of as well. I picked it up at news stands several times and was not impressed but that kinda stuff does not float my boat so to speak but hey to each his own. I read the link pondering its demise. I found it interesting that the one thing it did not mention was maybe they sold a product that not enough people wanted to buy plain and simple. I hope the dude gets a refund on the unused part of his sub. Government's view of the economy could be summed up in a few short phrases: If it moves, tax it. If it keeps moving, regulate it. And if it stops moving, subsidize it.
It's been purchased bu the same company that publishes American Woodworker and will be published 4 times a year
RonK,Thanks ! I do want to continue to read it.YOOOOOUUU DAAAAHHH MAN !
4 times a year? I guess it's going to compete with F+W's Woodworking? I don't remember how many issues I had remaining on my subscription but I guess I'll lose my money.
Chris
The rumor is that Woodwork Magazine, under new management, will be publishing quarterly. The other rumor is that they will honor all subscriptions, but it will take longer, since the there will only be 4 issues per year. If you are owed 8 issues, you've got 2 years left.
I have not confirmed this with the magazine, but this information was posted on another forum.
Jeff
The other rumor is that they will honor all subscriptions, but it will take longer, since the there will only be 4 issues per year. If you are owed 8 issues, you've got 2 years left.
Well that's good to know! Hopefully the new owners will do the sensible thing and honor the paid subscriptions.
"Rumor".....
One of the editors or other executives of the magazine browses here, I got an email from her last year, so she may see this thread and clarify the rumors. Unfortunately, I cleaned out all my old mail on Dec. 31st! or I could drop her a line. Oh, well.....forestgirl -- you can take the girl out of the forest, but you can't take the forest out of the girl ;-)
I know. I don't understand why all the major woodworking magazines target the same demographic of woodworker. I guess it's a sign of the times.
Mike
Mike,I'd call it a niche market. Woodwork is one of my favourite magazines. I read it on the newstands and wait for them to publish their magazine in book form.Chris @ http://www.flairwoodwork.spaces.live.com(soon to be http://www.flairwoodworks.com)
- Success is not the key to happines. Happiness is the key to success. If you love what you are doing, you will be successful. - Albert Schweitzer
Mine too. I hope they keep the same feel, although the artsy fartsy furniture was a little too much for my taste. I enjoyed reading the profiles of woodworkers the most.
I remember way back in the day when they first came out, Woodwork was only published four times a year so maybe everything just goes around in circles.
I believe NTM didn't take over AW until the middle of 2007. To Readers Digest belongs the credit for what happened to it before that. I don't buy it any more, so I don't know if it's improved any lately. Chances are, not.
Jim
Hopefully its not gone for good, was my favorite mag for the last several years. Had a subscription, let it lapse but still kept buying off the shelf, was even getting ready to get a new sub.
What I liked about it most was that it gave more in-depth profiles of studio woodworkers, got more into how they developed, got to be woodworkers, and how they've survived instead of just the old "how-to", there are plenty of mags that cover that. And the writing I thought was above average if sometimes a bit flowery but I guess that goes along with the gallery-level focus of the furniture.
And although I understand that the furniture featured was sometimes pretty out-there at least it wasn't boring. Even though I do love traditional styles, I really appreciate those that aren't trying to just reproduce what has already been done, design wise.
Hopefully it will still survive quarterly, I'll definitely support it if it continues in a similar editorial style.
I agree 100%. There are enough magazines out there that cover "how to make a shaker pie safe" type of articles. Woodwork was completely different in it's approach.
On the plus side, we'll never have to see another sounding bowl article... Worst woodworking article ever.I was just about to subscribe, it was a top class magazine that's for sure. I really enjoyed the woodworker profiles, and yes even the more eccentric articles.On a side note I received a bunch of old magazines for a relative. In the middle was a woodwork from 1996. Its funny how little the magazine had really changed, it was very true to its roots.
"sounding bowl article" .. hahaha that one was out there, that's for sure.
Edited 1/4/2009 2:18 pm ET by mvflaim
I just received a letter from New Trak Media and they informed me that Woodwork is no longer going to be published on a quarterly basis. Apparently they will publish a special Woodwork Annual Edition in December. Fortunately, they will honor my Woodwork subscription by giving me American Woodworker in it's place however, American Woodworker is no where near what Woodwork was when it comes to content. I will definitely miss that magazine.
Yeah, I was surprised and happy to find an issue on the shelves recently.But I did some research and found its quarterly and then annual print schedule. Not surprised as it is a very niche magazine, probably doesn't appeal as much to the weekend warriors and wood tinkerers. I kind of got the feeling that its focus was woodworkers that were intermediate to advanced, hence the lack of "how to use a table saw" type of articles.I know that might sound a bit snobby, but I cut my teeth on Wood and American Woodworker along with Fine Woodworking; I know they are useful. Even if Woodwork goes to an annual I would support it as long as its focus remains the same and doesn't get into tool reviews and basic woodworking how-to. That information is very easy to find. Interviews with people that have made their living doing fine craft are what I find most appealing about the magazine. The lives that woodworkers lead and how they acquired their skills or niche are inherently more varied than dovetailing methods. Also the sidebar articles that might detail a specialized technique they might have developed through their work I think are useful or at the very least interesting.I am still incredulous when I hear comments about the "artsy-fartsy" pieces that would be displayed in Woodwork. The longer I work at making a living woodworking gives me a greater appreciation of the challenges that type of work involves. And the technical aspect is the least of it. The time and expense of speculative work is substantial and a huge risk so anyone that makes a living doing original work will continue to fascinate me. The thought of gambling a few weeks worth of work and material on something that doesn't look familiar earns my respect. I think there is a market for Woodwork and I hope it survives this economy. I just wish they would offer the archives on DVD.
I agree with your take on Woodwork magazine. It was worth looking forward to and I especially liked its bias toward West Coast design or,as you say, the artsy-fartsy stuff. Sometimes I wondered about its advertising base and if it might not be marginally self-supportive. Its editorial approach at times seemed mature beyond what might be expected from the rest of the genre as well as presenting complex projects. I guess FWW could step up and fill the niche if it wanted to. There's so much me-too along with the how-to in this field that maybe, from a reader/craftsman point of view, a consolidation is needed. I'd be just fine with only two or three magazines to choose among. Hopefully, one of them would be a decent replacement for Woodwork. Jim
The old Woodwork was run by an editor who sold to the company that owns AW. The editing staff of AW will be responsible for the content of the new Woodwork. I suppose it's reasonable to expect that future issues, if they survive, will be like the first new issue. The model of having 2 mags at different levels of skill works quite well for PW and Woodworking, so it might work for AW, which is no longer run, or run down, by Readers Digest. But it sure is a tough time to start something like this.
Jim
We shall see . . . .
Actually the editor worked for the company that owned Woodwork, Ross Periodicals, and he didn't sell it, rather he lost his job when it was sold by Ross to New Track Media. Woodwork was edited by a team of one, John Lavine. He was the primary reason the magazine looked and read as it did. Really rare to find someone with such a wide ranging interest in everything wooden and great for the editor of a magazine. I have also heard that it will now be a once a year deal. Such a loss.
It would be great if Fine Woodworking could take the baton from Woodwork and incorporate some of its editorial focus. Looking at the early issues of FW it seems that it was once more similar to Woodwork.FW moved away from that niche over the years and I doubt it was so they could sell fewer magazines. Might just not be enough of a market but it would be nice to have a reason to subscribe to FW again.Thinking about Woodwork magazine again today two articles came to mind that are great examples of what I liked about it. Profiles of John Macnab, Dec. 2004 and Scott Schmidt, Feb. 2004.Macnab (article available here http://www.johnmacnab.ca/more.php ) developed a crazy rig to do his sculptures involving what looks like a fireman's pole, a tractor seat, sliding miter saw. I will likely never use this technique but found it amazing to see.Scott Schmidt's profile was interesting from the standpoint of it profiled an accomplished artist deciding to leave professional woodworking to go into nursing. Not an argument pro or con but just an interesting take you don't hear much. He was talented, had huge technique, experienced and published but made a choice to leave woodworking as a way of making a living.It was nice having a magazine that offered insight into a variety of woodworking applications.I think that one of the great things about woodworking is the history that is inherent in the process. Thinking about what you have learned and the threads back in time is pretty cool. I'm thinking of some of the woodworkers I've learned from (patternmaker's apprentice, Russian architect, Tibetan carver, Cuban immigrant) and how their approaches were different than what I learned in high school shop. Equally cool were the similarities: common ground that woodworkers inhabit. What Woodwork offered were insights into a much wider range of the woodworking lifestyles I wouldn't have had otherwise. It has continued into its most recent 2009 issue; hopefully it will continue.
That is because it is really sort of fine furniture making. The “woodworking” portion left a long time ago. The first 100 issues were great and I refer to them often but I wouldn’t cross the street for it today.
I'm with you. I certainly hope that Woodwork sticks around.Chris @ http://www.flairwoodwork.spaces.live.com and now http://www.flairwoodworks.com)
- Success is not the key to happiness. Happiness is the key to success. If you love what you are doing, you will be successful. - Albert Schweitzer
At least we still have the Woodshop News. It deals more with the business end of woodworking but it's still a refreshing change from the countless "how-to" articles in magazines.
Thanks for the heads up. I didn't know about that Woodshop news.Chris @ http://www.flairwoodwork.spaces.live.com and now http://www.flairwoodworks.com)
- Success is not the key to happiness. Happiness is the key to success. If you love what you are doing, you will be successful. - Albert Schweitzer
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